Lenses

"I was so focused on skating since the time I could walk, that I really didn't take in the beauty of life that was all around me," she said. "The accident was really a blessing in disguise."

She went on to explain that her service dog had developed cancer and had to be put down the previous month and that it would be several more weeks before she would be matched with a new one.

"I don't like dogs!" Larry stated matter-of-factly.

"Wait, weren't you just eating a couple of them?" Kassandra joked, putting Larry back at ease.

Larry was enjoying the way those that they passed would look at her and not him. He had no idea why this stunning woman clearly 15 years his junior would want his company for lunch, but he certainly wasn't going to complain.

As if reading his mind, she hugged his forearm more tightly to herself and said, "This may sound crazy but there's just something about you that makes me feel, I don't know, protected and secure."

While in line at Panera, Larry scanned the large menu boards on the wall behind the cashiers, trying to decide what to order. He looked over at Kassandra and asked, "What are you going to have?" and then blushed with embarrassment, realizing that she could not see the signs. "I'm sorry," he said meekly.

"It's okay, I have their menu memorized from my text-to-voice app on my computer."

"How about I read you the specials?"

"That would be wonderful, Larry."

She listened intently as he patiently read every detail written on the chalkboard hanging over the baked goods rack. She knew she was going to have the Thai Peanut Salad, her favorite, but was enjoying the way Larry was doting on her and making her feel special.

Kassandra pulled out her credit card but Larry insisted on paying. After a brief debate, she demurely conceded and graciously accepted his generosity. He escorted her to a table near the window and went back to retrieve their food.

The conversation over lunch was light and natural. Larry experienced none of the self-consciousness and doubt that he normally did when talking to women, especially someone as lovely as Kassandra. While he still felt the looks and stares from the other customers, he no longer cared, as he was seated with the most beautiful and compelling woman in the place.

"Oh dear!' Kassandra gasped, and then covered her smirk with her napkin.

Larry immediately looked down at his chest to make sure he didn't spill food on himself, and then asked, "What?" somewhat confused.

Kassandra leaned in over the table and Larry leaned in too, their noses inches apart.

"I probably shouldn't say anything," Kassandra whispered with a giggle, "but the woman in the booth behind me just told her friend she found pictures of her husband with another woman on his phone."

Larry's eyes darted back and forth as he tried to listen with all his might, but all he heard was the usual white-noise din of a crowded restaurant at lunchtime.

"Blindness silver lining," she said with a smile, "bionic hearing!"

They both shared a hearty laugh at that comment and Larry felt like they were the only two people in the place. He couldn't believe how comfortable and relaxed he was around Kassandra, and for God knows what reason, she seemed to be enjoying his company as well.

The conversation continued long after their dishes were empty as neither seemed to want the lunch date to end. Larry offered to go get them coffee and cookies, and Kassandra only agreed on the condition she would pay. As they finished their coffee, Kassandra got a sad look on her face and said politely, "I should probably let you get back to work, I've taken up too much of your time already."

"Are you kidding me, I could sit here and talk to you for days," Larry honestly replied, unsure where in his brain that confident statement came from. He worried about being too forthcoming until he saw the bright smile return to her face.

"Can I ask you something Larry Brooks?" she asked with a mock serious tone.

"Of course you can," responded Larry, bracing himself for the worst.

"Why don't you like dogs?"

Since he was 12, Larry mastered the art of deflecting uncomfortable conversations. He found that asking others about themselves was the best way to avoid talking about himself. And that tactic was working beautifully on this near perfect day. Right up until she asked that question.

Like every other experience in his life, he knew meeting Kassandra was too good to be true. A thousand stories and lies circled around in his brain, but he was feeling guilty enough about masturbating to her pictures the prior night, pictures he took surreptitiously at that, so there was no way in hell he was going to be untruthful to this sightless angel. "Besides," he justified to himself, "this was going to end soon anyway, so it might as well end now."

Without responding, Larry picked up her right hand, leaned in toward the middle of the table again, and placed it on the left side of his face. He fought back a tear as he felt her fingertips trace his scar from the middle of his cheek, up to his forehead, and back down to his jawline. After traversing the scar a few times, she cupped his cheek in her palm and wiped the wetness from the corner of his eye with her thumb.

Larry's voice cracked as he finally spoke. "If you want to leave now, I understand."

"Actually, I do have to get back to my apartment," she replied as she pulled her hand away from his face, and Larry's heart sunk. Before he could say anything, she added, "There's something there that I'm dying to show you, assuming you were not just pitying this clumsy blind girl all day."

Larry's eyes lit up and he smiled bigger than he had ever remembered smiling.

"Ummm, blind girl here," Kassandra joked, "I'm going to need a verbal response!"

"Yes!" Larry responded enthusiastically, "I mean no...I mean yes, I'd love to see what you want to show me!" He stood and offered her his arm again and she took it as she rose from her chair. The two walked out of Panera as they had just been voted King and Queen of the prom.

They stepped off the elevator at the top floor of the renovated factory and she led him to the door marked 4A. She removed her glasses and stood in front of the small camera to the right of the door frame, and then opened the door after the audible click. "Ironic, huh?" she sardonically asked Larry, referring to the retinal scanning security system.

"Are you a government agent or something," joked Larry as they entered the loft apartment.

"No, I just kept getting my purse snatched when I first moved in and the landlord got sick of replacing my keys!"

Larry wasn't sure if she was kidding or not, but he was too distracted by the spacious apartment, and the way she effortlessly moved around it, to delve any deeper. The floor-to-ceiling windows provided a breathtaking view of the river and the town, and there were vibrant original oil paintings on almost every wall. Nothing famous or anything he recognized, but the bold use of color and distinctive brushstrokes were captivating.

While Larry was absorbing the surroundings, Kassandra was busy in the kitchen. He walked over to the pewter urn which sat on the mantel over the fireplace and rubbed his thumb over the name "Rainbow" which was etched on the surface, along with two dates.

She carried in a tray that held a plate of cheese and crackers and two glasses of wine. Larry marveled at how she navigated around the dining room table, down the two steps to the sunk-in living room, and set the tray down on the coffee table without spilling a drop.

"Whatever you do, don't move any of the furniture," she joked as if reading his mind again. When she heard him laugh, she walked over to him and grabbed his arm and started pulling him to the front corner of the room. "What do you think of this?" she asked, as they stood in front of a four-by-eight oil on canvas abstract piece labeled "Exposure."

"I like it," Larry replied, "but to be honest, I have no clue what it's supposed to be."

"Close your eyes," she said to him, as she stood behind him. "Are they closed?"

"Yes," he said, as he felt her body press into his back.

"No peeking," she teased, as she lifted his hand and placed it on the surface of the painting, covering it with her own.

"Are you sure this is okay?" he asked, still with his eyes closed, "I was always taught to look but don't touch."

"Can you feel the brushstrokes?" she asked in a voice slightly above a whisper, while her hand guided his over the painting. "Really concentrate, and tell me if you can feel where the paint is thicker in some areas and thinner in others."

Larry was thankful that she was behind him because her breathy voice and the sensation of her hand on his was causing a bit of an issue in the front of his jeans.

"I swear I can feel the difference when the color changes, is that crazy?" she asked, still guiding his hand over the painting. "Does this answer your questions?"

Larry turned around to respond and her hands settled down around his waist. He asked, "What questions?" and realized he responded in an equally whispered tone.

She looked up at him and said, "People always wonder why the blind girl pays for the loft apartment with the exquisite view of the river and decorates it with original works from local artists. Like why not save the money and rent a basement apartment and leave the walls bare?"

Larry blushed as those thoughts did cross his mind.

She continued, "I may be blind but that does not define me. When I feel the warmth through these wonderful windows I see the sun. When I feel the amazing brushstrokes on these works of art, I see colors and experience the passion of the artist. When I play my music and practice my old skating routine, I see the frosty surface of the ice, the people in the stands and the way the arena lights glimmer off my blades. I just don't want to exist, Larry, I want to indulge myself in all that life has to offer, eyesight be damned!"

Looking down at this beautiful creature, Larry had an epiphany that he had been squandering his life, pitying himself because of a horrible childhood attack, and not embracing the beauty and opportunity that surrounds him. One afternoon with this insightful and passionate woman had opened his eyes as if he were truly seeing things for the first time. Before he realized what he was doing, he leaned down and pressed his lips to hers.

He felt her flinch when their lips met, and Larry thought he had made a horrible mistake, even though her hands never left his hips. He pulled away to apologize, but before he could say anything, she pulled him back to her and offered him her lips.

They kissed like teenagers in the back of the gym at the school dance, with the same level of inexperience. The only notches in Larry's bedpost were the sorority pledge that slept with him on a dare and the hooker the crew chipped in for on his fortieth birthday. His mind was racing with strategies and techniques gleaned from porn clips and erotic stories he read online, while at the same time exploding with the unbelievably satisfying feeling of having a beautiful woman kiss him.

He realized that his hands were still hanging by his sides so he reached around her and started rubbing her back. He heard Kassandra moan her approval, and her lips slightly parted. Taking this as an invitation, he tentatively extended his tongue and braced himself for rejection. Instead, she opened her mouth willingly and met his tongue with hers.

He felt her hands rubbing his back now, almost mimicking his movements. Here he was standing in a relative stranger's apartment, sucking face like a teenager, and he thought to himself, "Can you have love at first sight with someone who cannot see?"

Kassandra broke their kiss and asked, "Who are you, Larry Brooks?"

"I have no idea, Kassandra Dollowski," he replied while still holding her, "the confident guy standing here kissing you is a stranger to me as well."

"The kindness in your voice, the strength, and respect in your touch, and the way you've made me feel like the only woman on Earth all day, I can see that you are a very good man."

"And you are the most incredible woman I've ever met, not that I have met a lot of women."

"I don't know what it is about you, and this is going to sound cliche, but I've seriously never done this before."

"Well, I'm glad you picked me to be the first, although I'm not quite sure what 'this' is."

She got a very serious look on her face, and whispered, "You would be my first."

Her cheeks reddened and it took Larry a moment for the significance of her admission to dawn on him. "I've never been with anyone who has cared for me the way that you seem to, and if you're saying what I think you're saying, it would be a first time for both of us."

He held her to him and they kissed again, more passionately than before. Both of them let their hands wander further over each other's backs and bodies with a newfound determination and sense of urgency.

Kassandra broke their kiss again and ran her hands down his arms, and clasped his right hand in hers. She led him through the living room and into her bedroom. Larry looked at the shelves of skating trophies on the far wall, and then to the picture of the older couple on the dresser, most likely her parents. When he looked back down at her he felt her hands on his chest undoing the buttons of his shirt.

He stopped her on the third button and said, "We don't have to do this if you don't want to."

She kissed him on his bare chest, just above his nipple, and continued to unbutton his shirt.

Larry held his breath as her hands moved down to the buckle of his belt. He wanted nothing more than to be naked with this goddess but couldn't suppress the memories of that sorority bitch's laughter when she saw the underwhelming size and girth of his penis.

"You're not breathing you know," Kassandra said, breaking the tension as she unbuttoned his jeans and lowered his fly.

Larry inhaled deeply as his pants hit the floor and she reached into his boxers. He searched her face for any signs of disappointment or amusement, but only saw contentment. Her hand felt soft and warm around his already fully erect cock, and he exhaled blissfully as it started to move.

"This I have done before, but not for a very long time," Kassandra admitted, as she lowered herself to her knees, taking Larry's boxers down with her. She looked up at him lovingly as she took him into her mouth and he moaned his approval at the warm wet feeling of her lips and tongue. He knew she couldn't see him, but the eye contact she maintained while sucking his cock made his heart flutter even more.

Larry reached down and grabbed her under her arms, and started to lift her back to her feet. While her mouth felt incredible on him, he knew he wouldn't last much longer, and he wanted the focus to be on her.

"Wasn't it good?" she asked, a hint of self-doubt in her voice.

"The problem was that it was too good," Larry honestly replied, "but tonight is all about you."

He untucked her shirt from her jeans and smiled as she lifted her arms to help him remove it. He unsnapped the front clasp of her bra and she shrugged it off her shoulders. Larry leaned in and kissed her right nipple, and his hand easily covered the entirety of her left breast. He squeezed and massaged her left nipple while feasting on the right.

Kassandra cradled his head in her hands and ran her fingers through his hair while letting out soft moans and whimpers. She shrieked in surprise as Larry effortlessly scooped her up into his arms and laid her down on the bed. He crawled up between her legs and started unbuckling her belt as she had done for him.

It was a simple move that he had seen countless times in porn films, but one that he had always found incredibly arousing. When she raised her hips to allow him to remove her pants, Larry nearly lost his load then and there.

"Oh my God!" Larry involuntarily exclaimed when he saw the mass of dark pubes sticking out from the sides of her pink panties.

"I'm really sorry," Kassandra said as her hands covered her mound, "my friend Katie tells me that all the girls shave down there now, but I just don't trust myself with a razor in that neighborhood."

"And I hope you never do," Larry assured her, as he leaned forward and kissed the front of her panties which were textured by the mass of hair beneath. He continued to kiss and lick her through her panties and smiled as the material darkened, unsure if it was his saliva or her arousal which was dampening the thin cotton.

After a while, he grabbed the waistband of her underwear, and once again she popped her butt off the bed to allow him to remove them. They both were totally naked now and Larry was surprised by this newfound feeling of sexual confidence.

Larry ran his fingers through her dense pubic hair, then tightened them together and pulled gently, until all of the hair slipped through his fingers. He continued this motion several times and watched her pussy lips glisten with her natural moisture. He lowered his face to her crotch once again, and she let out a cross between a purr and a growl when his tongue made direct contact with her labia.

He had never eaten pussy before, but Larry had watched so much porn and read so many erotic stories about it, he felt like a book-smart intern prepping for his first practical surgery. He licked up and down her moist slit while searching out her clit with his thumb. He couldn't swear to it in a court of law, but with the way she was moaning and writhing on the bed, he was pretty sure that he located it.

"Right there, right there, right there," she directed as she held his head tightly to her crotch and arched her back off the bed. Larry was rewarded for a job well done with a face full of girl cum as her thighs clamped down on his head.

When her orgasm receded and her body finally relaxed, Larry kissed her hirsute mound tenderly and used it to wipe some of the moisture from his face. He kissed up her torso slowly, paying special attention to her navel and nipples, and his cock was so hard that he was sure it could cut glass.

He kissed up her neck and over her jaw and she devoured his tongue when his kiss finally landed on her lips. He could feel the wetness of her crotch on his erection, and he knew he needed to be inside her.

"Are you ready?" he asked politely, seeking final permission to accept the gift she seemed so eager and willing to offer him.

"I've been waiting for 27 years for you, Larry Brooks," she replied, and pulled him back into another kiss.

Larry reached down in between them and positioned his cock at her entrance. The moist heat was like nothing he had ever felt before, as his modest tool slipped into her tight velvet canal. He pushed in slowly, concerned about hurting her, but felt no resistance until the base of his cock met her furry mound.

"So good," she uttered as she held him tight to her and reveled in the feeling of finally having a real cock inside her.

Larry savored the warm wet vice that surrounded his cock and could feel her heartbeat through his chest. He waited several moments before he gently pulled back until just the head was left inside her, then slowly pushed forward until he bottomed out again. She continued to kiss him as he repeated this process, picking up speed with each succeeding thrust until they built up a steady pace and were fucking like newlyweds.

Larry felt the sperm boiling up from his balls and he did not know how much longer he could delay the inevitable, even though he wished this feeling could go on forever. "Are you safe?" he whispered in her ear, hoping for an affirmative answer, as he would hate to have to pull out and finish on her stomach like one of the cheap whores on PornHub.